Too Loud
by PlummyPlums
Summary: When attacked by a wild Thunderdrum, one of the gang is left devastated. How will the loudest member of the team react to losing his hearing so suddenly, and how will the gang cope with Snotlout's condition? Set during RTTE season 2, no defined place. Rated T for language and dark themes.
1. Camp

Here, have the result of me rewatching "Imperfect Harmony", some introspection, and the world's worst favorite character. Also, don't mind my choppy writing style, I was tired when I wrote this. Thanks to A_Person_Of_Worth for beta'ing!

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"Alright, gang, let's land in that clearing up ahead! Looks like a good spot to spend the night."

"Finally! Hookfang's practically falling out of the sky here, and you know how he gets when he's tired." The Nightmare growled and shook, obviously annoyed, but it just proved his riders' point. "Oh yeah, Hooky, _real_ mature."

The dragon riders had been flying all day, scouting for a supposed new island that wasn't on their maps yet. Unfortunately, it was estimated that it would take multiple days of flying to get there, and Hiccup wasn't about to have his team flying all day _and_ night; that was the easiest way to get everyone on edge (no pun intended) and have them making mistakes. They would rest on this island (the safest one they'd encountered in a while) for the night and set off again in the morning. The island they landed on seemed perfect; plenty of trees to provide firewood, no angry dragons attacking them yet, and no people to negotiate with. Overall, this stay should be easier than some of their other rest stops.

After giving a moment for the dust to settle, Hiccup called everyone together and began task management. If they all worked at once, camp would be put together faster, and they could all get the rest they needed. The original plan was that Astrid and the twins would go scout the area before they slept to make sure it was safe, Fishlegs would tend the dragons, Snotlout would collect firewood, and Hiccup would collect water from a nearby stream. Unfortunately, nothing ever works out the way Hiccup wants, and the twins ended up going with Snotlout. Astrid was "too bossy", they said, and he wasn't willing to spend energy arguing with them tonight. Plus, it did save him from having to keep Astrid from killing them later, even if trading that problem for the inefficient, unproductive mess that is the twins and Snotlout together. Whatever, if they didn't get enough firewood because they were procrastinating, they'd just have to go out and get more. It wouldn't be his problem. The plan amended, he sent everyone off to complete their tasks.

Thankfully, it wasn't too dark yet, just becoming dusk, and it was relatively easy for Hiccup to reach his destination. In no rush, he set about filling all of the waterskins he had brought in the clear water, enjoying the relaxing environment of the forest around him. He couldn't hear any dragons nearby, which was surprising, but that didn't concern him much; it just meant that there was less risk of the group being attacked. There had been many occasions where they had gone to sleep only to find that there was some mysterious force or dragon on the island that caused them trouble. As long as they kept an eye out for Dagur and his men, they would be just fine. They would be able to hear the madman pulling up to the shores anyway, so there was little need to worry. The sound of birds and the rustling of leaves was a nice change of pace from the constant roaring and keening of dragons at night on other islands.

Hiccup was almost finished replenishing their water stores when he began to get a strange feeling that he couldn't quite place. The more he tried to ignore it, the worse it became, but he pushed it aside as best as he could. He was probably just tired from the long flight, and it was affecting his emotions. The riders had gotten up early, after all, and it was already becoming dark when they began setting up camp. Everyone could use a good night's sleep, and then they'd be right as rain and ready to continue the journey to the new island. Having finally filled the last waterskin, he stood and headed back to camp, hoping everyone had been able to work together long enough to set it up properly.

By the time he got to camp, it was nearly pitch dark, only broken up by fireflies and the light of the small fire. The sounds of birds had died down, replaced with the soft chitter of insects. All of the other riders were assembled around the fire, laying against their dragons, looking rather drowsy. Hiccup smiled to himself, glad that they could be quiet for once, and set himself beside Toothless. "Everything good here?"

Astrid nodded. "The area seems safe, but I wouldn't stay here for longer than we have to. Something feels off here."

Hiccup held back a sigh, hoping there wouldn't be any bad news. He couldn't blame her, though, he did have a weird feeling about this place. The others seemed to share that sentiment, grumbling amongst themselves. Seems he wasn't the only one who got a sort of anxiety surrounding this island.

"Don't worry, guys, we're only staying the night. We're gonna get a good night's sleep and get out there again in the morning. Does anybody object?"

The twins and Snotlout raised their hands, but Hiccup knew that they just didn't want to have to get up early (he had dealt with them complaining about being tired all morning), so he dismissed them. "Great, no objections. Let's get to sleep, we have to get up early again tomorrow." With that, he bid everyone goodnight and laid back against Toothless, closing his eyes and drifting off to the soft rumble of the dragons purring and the murmuring of the others trying to sleep.

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Agh, it's been so long since I've written! This was way harder than expected, for some reason. Give me suggestions and I hope you like it!


	2. Attack

Hiccup was suddenly startled awake when the unmistakably loud cry of a Thunderdrum resounded through the area, along with a familiar high-pitched scream. In the moment it took for him to react, he noticed that Hookfang was already awake and instantly zipped off into the woods, keening loudly in concern. Hiccup was on his feet in seconds, following the Nightmare, the other riders right on his heels. There were many questions running through his head, but there was no time to think about them, especially when they came across the situation.

Hookfang was curled protectively around his rider, who was shaking like a leaf and had his hands firmly clamped over his ears, eyes shut tight. The Thunderdrum was somewhat hard to see, its coloration matching the forest in the dark, but the group could certainly hear it. Thankfully, it was no longer using its powerful concussive sound, but it was still quite loud. The screeching responses from Hookfang were not helping, and the Nightmare was just getting more heated, literally; he was beginning to flame up, bringing sporadic bursts of light to the small clearing.

Quickly making a plan, Hiccup ran between the feuding dragons, trying to calm them. After a few minutes, Hookfang stopped fighting and occupied himself with tending to Snotlout, who didn't seem to be reacting at all to his gentle croons of concern, but leaned into the dragon's warm embrace. The Thunderdrum was another story entirely. It made sense, Tidal classes were often rather aggressive, especially Thunderdrums, but this thing was angry . Talking to it wouldn't do anything (Thunderdrums were hard of hearing), but Hiccup did his best to quell its rage, making himself as non-threatening as possible, and standing somewhat crouched and closed off as a show of submission..

With Toothless stood by his side as a precaution, Hiccup held his hands in the air, turning to look away from the beast and closing his eyes. This tended to work on most dragons, and had even worked on a Thunderdrum in the past, so he wasn't entirely surprised when the gigantic reptile finally calmed a bit. It gave one final scream before running off into the brush, presumably to find a better hiding spot. Hopefully it was alone and they wouldn't need to deal with it or any of its friends for the rest of their short stay on this island.

It took a moment for everyone to catch their breath, and then Hiccup remembered that the dragon wasn't the only thing to worry about here. Trying to ignore his growing sense of unease, Hiccup kneeled beside his cousin, putting a hand on his shoulder in an attempt to comfort him. Snotlout seemed disoriented and even though he had opened his eyes, they were unfocused and filled with anxiety. He didn't bother saying anything, knowing Snotlout would likely not be able to hear him unless he was yelling, but helped the shorter boy to his feet and steadied him as he stumbled a bit.

Continuing to support his cousin, Hiccup turned to the rest of the gang, who all shared looks of confusion and sympathy. No one could have known that there were any dragons on the island, especially since they had scouted the area. When had that dragon gotten here? They weren't near the coast, so it was very odd for a Thunderdrum to be present. He couldn't even think of a reason for a Tidal class dragon to be so far inland alone. He didn't want to think about it anymore, though; he was tired and irritated with the rude awakening. They all were. Thankfully, with the dragon gone, they had no reason to stay there, and could head back to camp. There were still a few hours left before daylight, so they could get in some more sleep before the second half of the trip tomorrow.

It made sense for Snotlout to be discombobulated, but the fact that he continuously tripped and seemed unsteady as they walked back to camp was worrying. That wasn't a normal aftereffect of a Thunderdrum attack, was it? Usually people just had temporary hearing issues, maybe a headache, but he didn't recall anyone ever being so shaken up. He was probably just tired; they had flown all day, and their sleep was interrupted in the wee hours of the morning. Deciding to go with that explanation, he tried to stop worrying so much. Their shortest team member hated being pitied and cared for, and he'd never let Hiccup live down something as silly as caring about his own kin.

Slumping on the ground beside Toothless, Hiccup knew that the best option for now was just to sleep. He could worry about travel and annoying older cousins in the morning.


	3. Realization

The second time Hiccup awoke that day, things were much different. The soft sound of birds had returned, and light was filtering through the canopy of trees. Toothless snored behind him, the gentle rumble soothing to the point that Hiccup was tempted to close his eyes and go back to sleep. It was going to be a long day, and there was no time to waste. Forcing himself to stand, Hiccup had to smile at the almost sweet sight of the other riders and dragons all sleeping. Tuffnut was incoherently mumbling beside his sister, who shifted and nearly knocked him over in the process. Fishlegs was cuddling with Meatlug, who was purring, and Astrid was moving a bit, likely waking up. Snotlout lay against Hookfang, who was curled around him protectively, and faced away from the rest of the group.

Taking a sip from his waterskin, Hiccup grabbed a small loaf of bread from his saddlebag and a hunk of dried mutton for Toothless. A simple meal, but the best one can get while on the road (without going hunting, that is). Knowing better than to let the others wake up on their own time, he called, "Ok, everybody, it's time to go! Let's eat something and get outta here!"

The twins groaned loudly in annoyance, obviously not wanting to be awake. Their twin dragon (dragons?) lumbered to their feet, dropping the two on the ground, leading to even more whining before they eventually sat up. Meanwhile, Astrid jolted awake, as if ready for battle, and wasted no time in getting breakfast for her and Stormfly, who took only a moment longer than her rider to get up. Meatlug lazily opened her eyes and grunted, rolling over heavily. This nearly crushed Fishlegs, who thankfully managed to move out of the way, now fully awake. Hookfang, ever the heavy sleeper, didn't stir, but Hiccup knew he'd get up when Snotlout stopped being stubborn and got moving. He always tried to go back to sleep when they had to get up. Hiccup would give him a bit before calling him again, knowing he'd listen if pushed, but wanting to give him time. He'd had a rough night, after all.

Checking the position of the sun, Hiccup determined that they must've gotten up later than he'd hoped. This wasn't surprising, based on how tired they had all been and the events of last night, but it was still enough to annoy him. It didn't help that the twins were arguing over something (he didn't care enough to pay close attention). Needless to say, the nice, soothing mood of the morning was being tarnished a bit. Either way, they'd have to get moving if they hoped to get a decent chunk of their trip done. Maybe they could set up camp and go to sleep earlier than last night, if they found a good enough island. He did feel bad at the idea of overworking his friends and their dragons, so he resolved to end the journey earlier than the day before. "Alright gang, ready to go?"

Everyone agreed (some more enthusiastically than others), except for, of course, Snotlout. Somehow, the loud fighting of the twins hadn't managed to wake him up, though Hookfang was stirring. He was just that intent on being stubborn, huh? Well, Hiccup couldn't blame him, but he wasn't in the mood for his cousin's attitude today. "Snotlout, it's time to head out, come on!"

When he didn't respond, Hiccup could feel his annoyance growing. This was not the time to be screwing around. They had limited daylight and everyone was already a little on edge from the lack of sleep. He called again, only to get the same response (or, rather, lack thereof). Walking towards the sleeping pair with a huff, he placed his hand on Snotlout's shoulder and shook him gently, then a bit rougher when he only shifted and grumbled. He just _had_ to be the heaviest sleeper on Berk, didn't he? He finally opened his eyes with a start when Hookfang jumped to alertness at the movement, looking confused before his gaze settled on Hiccup. "About time you got up. Come on, we're leaving."

There was a stretch of silence as Snotlout just stared at him with a somewhat pained expression, seeming confused. "What? I can't…" he paused, face becoming more puzzled as he raised his already loud voice, "you can't expect me to hear you over these bugs, right?"

Now was Hiccup's turn to be confused. Bugs? What? Sure, he could hear them around, especially since it was time for the cicadas to come out, but they were nowhere near loud, much less overwhelming. If anything, the birds were louder than the insects in the area. "The bugs aren't making much noise, what are you talking about? And why are you yelling at me?"

Snotlout scowled, obviously displeased with this answer. "Hiccup, I just said I can't hear anything you're saying! I can't even hear what _I'm_ saying! Where are those stupid bugs? There's gotta be hundreds for them to be this loud, and I can't see any!"

Nearly screaming from frustration (seriously, what was it with him and bugs today?), Hiccup continued to argue. "Snotlout, this is getting ridiculous, you're not making any sense! Where could I possibly be hiding hundreds of..."

His voice trailed off when he took a moment to think about what was going on. Hookfang nudged his rider, rumbling in concern, only to be met with a pat on the head as Snotlout laid back against him, seeming fatigued. His annoyance gave way to worry for his older cousin; he'd never acted like this before, and he'd never heard of anyone acting like this either. Hearing things wasn't entirely new, the twins had many stories of their insane family members, but he seemed to be in _pain_. He had slowly curled in on himself, eyes closed and massaging his head as though he had a migraine. While he was contemplating the situation, the other riders approached, Fishlegs concerned and the others seeming annoyed.

Astrid glared at the shorter viking, apparently not noticing the fact that he was in distress. "Is there a reason he won't get up? We're already running late is it is, and we don't need him holding us back with something stupid!"

"No, no, Astrid, wait. I think something's wrong," Hiccup said, holding out a hand in an attempt to calm the rage of the irate blonde. Astrid had never been one for patience, and she was even worse when tired. She had been known to throw axes when her temper was tested, and he didn't want to push her, but he had a feeling there was more going on than he thought. While his cousin was one for dramatics, he wasn't known to fake injury or illness. If it seemed something was wrong, something was wrong. "Fishlegs, could you come here?"

Said boy approached, confused. "What do you think is going on, Hiccup?"

"You know how it was hard for you guys to hear after you got attacked by the Thunderdrum on Melody Island?" Fishlegs nodded. "What was it like? How long did that last?"

"Um...well, it was kind of like being underwater. Everything was muffled, and there was a weird, high-pitched noise over everything. I can't speak for the others, but my hearing came back after an hour or two, and I had a headache after that lasted a few days."

"So after a while, you could hear again, right?"

"Yeah. Loud noises still hurt, but I was more or less back to normal."

He paused as he considered this information. "It's been at least 4 hours, hasn't it? We woke up long before daybreak, and that was when the Thunderdrum attacked. It's at least an hour after sunrise. How come he's not back to normal yet?"

Suddenly, Hookfang squawked, and Snotlout made a surprised, yet pained sound. Turning back to his older cousin, Hiccup's heart dropped to his feet. There was blood on his fingertips.


End file.
